Florida Braces For Hurricane Irma As It Barrels Through Caribbean

Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) on Thursday warned residents of South Florida to be prepared for evacuation as Hurricane Irma, now a Category 4 storm, makes its way north. Irma pummeled the Turks and Caicos Islands Thursday night and early Friday with sustained winds of up to 155 miles per hour after raking the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Half of Puerto Rico was without power and some 50,000 residents without water. “Regardless of which [Florida] coast you live on, be prepared to evacuate,” Scott said. Public schools and state offices were closed Friday, ahead of Irma’s expected landfall by Sunday. Irma killed eight people on St. Martin and St. Barts, one person on Antigua, and a 2-year-old on Barbuda; the death toll is expected to rise.